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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: date · row · clip · fine · vault · fan · field · mine

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. fine — high quality
  5. date — the fruit
  6. clip — for paper
  7. field — farmland
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. fine — all right
  10. field — for sport
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. field — a subject
  13. clip — to cut
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. vault — a safe
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. row — a line
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. mine — for digging
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. clip — a video
  24. row — a quarrel

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com